It has been well documented that 3 in 10 adults over the age of 60 will acquire hearing loss, most of which will be diagnosed with presbycusis, an irreversible deterioration of the sensorineural aspects of the auditory system. There are also other etiologies of hearing loss, such as genetic congenital manifestations and noise-induced trauma, which can affect individuals in diverse age groups. The most practical and widely-used treatment for presbycusis and other forms of sensorineural hearing loss is with hearing aids; personal devices which can restore the loss of auditory sensation measured during one's audiological assessment.
Considerable research and development efforts have been set forward to provide hearing aids which precisely correct an individual's loss of hearing without discomfort or inconvenience. Despite the investment in research and development, patients may remain dissatisfied with the results provided by hearing aids and/or the lack of knowledge from those fitting these devices. Compounded to this possible poor performance are the elevated costs for this research and development which are passed along to the patients. As such, many patients are reticent to purchase hearing aids as they are unable to determine the cost/benefit ratio for the devices and will often postpone correction of hearing loss to their detriment. Prolonged auditory deprivation has been linked to loss of neural atrophy resulting in poor speech discrimination, social isolation and dementia in the elderly.
Currently the only means for a hearing-impaired individual to gauge benefit from hearing aids is by experiencing sound from the hearing aids themselves. Due to the time involved in this process, many individuals are unable to achieve their due diligence prior to purchasing these expensive devices, or may not trust the competencies of dispensers from retail outlets in selecting the best devices. As such, there is tremendous loss to follow-up and a low buy-in from hearing-impaired patients.
Accordingly, systems and methods that enable improved hearing aid appraisal and selection processes become highly desirable.
It will be noted that throughout the appended drawings, like features are identified by like reference numerals.